


A Game of Cloak and Dagger

by AgeOfTonyJunior



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Established Relationship, Flirting, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Rating: T
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:48:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24944140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AgeOfTonyJunior/pseuds/AgeOfTonyJunior
Summary: 12 hours in Tony's day starting at 2:13 PM and ending at 2:13 AM turn out are all that he needs to have a lifetime of peace.~~He didn’t answer immediately, instead he captured Tony’s lips in a soft kiss. Tony smiled, going up on his tiptoes out of habit. He refused to be distracted and made the kiss short. “Steve!” He whined. “I saw the clothes. We’re escaping from the compound, aren’t we?”~~
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 2
Kudos: 44





	A Game of Cloak and Dagger

**2:13 PM~**

Tony’s schedule was absolutely swamped. Between meetings to discuss how they’re finally going to put an end to the failed project that is the Accords and approving potential projects to be funded by the September Foundation, he had to reheat his 9:00 AM coffee four times so far. 

He finally got a break from assistants calling for his attention and sat down behind his desk. He groaned. The state of his desk did nothing to take away from the overwhelming feeling that he was behind on work. 

His desk was piled high with paperwork; documents he needed to sign, drafts he needed to approve, and last minute changes to his schedule. He didn’t have a spot to set down his coffee mug. And if he were being honest, he had the urge to sweep his desk clear and let all the pesky paperwork take a tumble to the floor. 

But this far in his life in the spotlight, he knew better than to create a scene. Still, he needed to make room to sort out where he was going to begin with his work and pushed the majority of the documents off to the side. To his relief, the coaster he kept on the desk made an appearance and he set his coffee mug down. 

Tony leaned back in his chair and swiveled it around. He was tired. There was no better adjective to describe his current state. Granted, it has been a while since he’s had a full day at the office. He’ll probably get reaccustomed to the hectically organised system soon enough.

As he spun his chair back around, he noticed a blue corner hidden until a thick black folder. He leaned forward and pulled it out, finding it to be a letter envelope. He raised an eyebrow. It was strange that an unopened letter made its way to his desk. His team took care of all mail and only forwarded what was important to him. Stranger still was that the letter was addressed to him by first name only, with no postage or return address. Tony came to the conclusion that someone placed it on his desk for him to read only. 

Curious by nature, Tony shrugged and rummaged through his drawer for the letter opener he rarely used. He opened it in one swift stroke and unfolded the paper. He beamed as soon as he recognized the flawless calligraphic handwriting. “Steve.” He began reading the letter. 

_To my most beloved Tony,_

_I wanted this letter to surprise you. Believe me, it wasn’t easy sneaking into your_ _office and hiding it among the pile of work that you have to do. There was always_ _someone passing by your office. I guess they are your assistants going in and_ _out and adding to the miserable pile of work that can only be completed by you._ _My sympathy to you on that by the way._

_I know you’re wondering why I’m writing a letter instead of calling, texting, or_ _simply just telling you before you left this morning. Bear with me, you will find out_ _in time._

_I made arrangements for us to have dinner tonight. Don’t panic, I’ve taken care of_ _your endless schedule and cleared it for the evening, which was also an_ _impossible task. Good thing I know two certain hooligans who can convince the_ _devil that Hell doesn’t belong to him._

_All the cloak and dagger will be revealed when you meet me this evening at the_ _address at the end of the letter at 7:00 PM._

_I can’t wait for it._

_Yours until the end,_

_Steve_

Tony’s eyes lingered on the words Steve used to sign his letter. Yours. He only wished he was a fraction as elaborate as him to convey how much he reciprocated the sentiment. Folding the letter neatly back into its envelope, he took a large gulp of his once-again cold coffee and proceeded to grab for the first document he saw, newly invigorated to get his work done. 

* * *

**5:43 PM~**

Tony should’ve expected that he’d arrive at an empty home. Steve did say that he wanted to meet him wherever that address led to. He didn’t think of it at the time and was a little disappointed when Steve didn’t greet him at the door. He quickly remembered their date and realized he had just over an hour before he was due to meet Steve. 

He took off around his room in the compound gathering what he needed to get ready which proved difficult because he didn’t know what he should wear. Sure, it was a dinner but it was also an invitation to a date that he and Steve didn’t plan together. A quick ask to FRIDAY about the address yielded that it was a hotel in the middle of the city, and not just any hotel, one of the 5-Star ones. It did kind of help to give him a dress code to follow. 

20 minutes after he’d walked into his closet, there were more clothes outside it than inside it, but he’d finally decided on his outfit. As he walked away from where he laid it neatly on the bed, towards the bathroom, he felt a nervousness he didn’t understand. It was only dinner with Steve, something they’d had a million times over; he had no reason to be nervous. 

Despite himself, as he stripped out of his office outfit, he felt butterflies in his stomach like he did three years ago when they’d agreed to go on their first date. Fresh off snapping his fingers and ridding the world of Thanos and his army, he understood then why he felt nervous. Now it didn’t make much sense. 

He didn’t have the luxury of time to think about it philosophically now, not when Steve was likely already ready, so he pushed the thought away and proceeded to wash up. 

* * *

**6:21 PM~**

He was going to be late. FRIDAY informed him that ETA to Steve’s destination was 6:54 PM if he left now. He wasn’t done with his hair yet and he didn’t know how he should style it. It really didn’t help him concentrate how she kept updating his ETA every two minutes. 

“FRIDAY! If I want to know when I’m getting there, I’ll ask!” He called out to the AI as he experimented with different ways to part his hair.

In the end he decided to style it similarly to how he did on their first date. He was possibly being a tad bit nostalgic. He knew Steve liked it when he styled his hair like that so it was bound to earn him bonus points if he calculated his outfit accurately. 

The final touch to his appearance was a spray of a cologne that he reserved for special occasions. And nothing was more special than a surprise date with the love of his life. It was also one he so very rarely used that Steve likely wasn’t used to its scent and he looked forward to seeing how he would react. 

With a onceover look at himself in the mirror, he took a breath in and headed for the door. 

* * *

**6:49 PM~**

“Damn New York City traffic!” 

He was definitely going to be late now and traffic had slowed to an impossible crawl. FRIDAY told him his ETA was now 7:05 PM which was absolutely unacceptable, but it wasn’t as if he could will the cars in front of him to disappear into thin air.

A flicker in his eyes suggested an idea. “FRIDAY, take the car back home.” He instructed as he stepped out of the car. 

Red metal boots touched concrete as Tony willed the suit to form around him. A benefit of being Iron Man was that he could fly anywhere he wanted to. Fully engulfed in his second skin, Tony took off flying to his destination. 

He made it to the hotel before FRIDAY’s ETA for the car and it felt good. He disassembled the suit and was back in his carefully chosen outfit for the evening as he stepped into the lobby. A host approached him and handed him a card. Tony thanked him and examined it. He laughed. Steve had drawn them sitting at their undoubtedly reserved table along with a map of how to get there. 

Tony followed Steve’s map through the hotel lobby to the restaurant. After that, he had no use for it. Once he was in the crowded restaurant, an unearthly gravity pulled him towards the only man in the crowded room who mattered to him. Like the tides pulled by the moon, Tony gravitated towards Steve who stood out from the hundred or so faces. 

As soon as their eyes met across the room, Tony grinned and Steve stood up. Tony walked towards him confidently, the nervous butterflies he felt earlier having not been invited on their date tonight. 

Once he was standing a foot apart from Steve, he closed the small distance between them and wrapped his arms around him. “Hi.”

Steve tucked his face into the crook of Tony’s neck and inhaled. “Hi.”

A moment passed and neither of them moved, or wanted to, perfectly content standing in each other’s arms. It was Tony who pulled back a fraction to look into Steve’s eyes. “Cloak and dagger. Is that your new game?”

Steve laughed, a melody to Tony’s ears. “I did say you will find out everything.”

Tony appeared unconvinced as he narrowed his eyes and pulled away a further fraction. “When?”

Steve pressed a quick kiss to his lips, one that was over before Tony had the chance to react. “By the end of the night.”

Tony’s eyes narrowed even further but they didn’t remain that way as Steve stepped back and around Tony to pull his chair out for him, giving Tony a full view of himself. 

Steve was dressed in a blue suit, a few shades darker than Tony’s own. But where Tony’s suit sat perfectly tailored on him, Steve’s hugged the curves of his muscles obscenely. Not to mention the perfectly coiffed blonde hair contrasting with the most beautiful blue eyes. He was a sight. 

“Mr. Rogers. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were trying to woo someone tonight.” Tony remarked as he sat down on the offered chair and Steve tucked it in. 

Steve leaned over the back of the chair and whispered into Tony’s ear. “Oh, I am.” 

A shiver ran down Tony’s spine as Steve purposely nudged his nose against the shell of his ear. He hoped they could actually get through dinner before they had to excuse themselves and get a room. Good thing the restaurant was in a hotel.

* * *

**9:33 PM~**

Steve ordered the cheque as Tony finished the last of his creme brulee. He licked his lips. “When are you going to tell me the occasion of this surprise date? It’s the end of the night already.”

Scribbling his signature down on the paper, Steve looked squarely into Tony’s eyes. “Who said it’s the end of the night?”

Tony raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been acting cryptic all day. Well, whatever part of the day I witnessed you. The letter, this date, you refusing to tell me what’s going on. Not that I’m not enjoying it, but I’m a curious man, Steve. I like answers.”

Steve smiled. “You will get answers. I promise.”

“Is that a Captain America promise? Or a ‘I promise’ but mean nothing by it.” Tony pouted.

With narrowed eyes Steve answered, “It’s a Captain America promise.” He smirked and stood up from his chair. “Come on. Onto phase two.” He said as he pulled Tony’s chair back from the table.

No less confused, Tony took Steve’s offered arm and followed him out of the restaurant and back into the hotel lobby. “What are we doing here?”

Steve pressed the call button for the elevator. “We’re taking the elevator.”

Tony’s look of pure bewilderment was astonishing. “Why?” He’d forgotten how he had the idea of getting a room before they started dinner. In his defence though, Steve was distracting.

“Because,” Steve explained, switching Tony’s arm on his for his hand, linking their fingers together. “We have a room.”

It was inside the elevator and nearing the floor Steve selected that Tony spoke. “Does Mr. Rogers intend to do unspeakable things to me? Away from home, alone, isolated in a hotel.”

Steve tried to contain his smile and didn’t offer Tony an answer. Tony stared at him but Steve didn’t relent. 

The elevator dinged, signalling their arrival at the correct floor. Steve led them out and down the long hallway, stopping at the end of it in front of a door marked ‘The Presidential Suite’.

“Ooh la la. The Presidential Suite. Pour moi?” Tony joked.

Steve simply rolled his eyes at him and opened the door. He motioned Tony inside and followed soon. He locked the door after making sure the Do Not Disturb sign was present and removed his suit jacket. “I’ll just be a minute Tony.” He announced as he entered the bathroom.

“Take your time, babe.” Tony called back as he walked further inside the room, taking its components into account. 

As its door implied, the room was large. He was standing in the living room and he could see two other rooms and the bathroom Steve went to. He guessed they were master bedroom and bedroom. He made his way to one of the rooms and it turned out to be the master bedroom. What perplexed Tony was the bag sitting atop the bed. He approached the bed and opened the bag to find changes of clothes for himself and Steve, along with sweatpants and t-shirts they can wear to bed. 

Tony began to put the clothes away in the closet, a fond expression colouring his face at the fact that Steve thought of everything, even though he still didn’t tell him much. Tony was gathering some clues; it appeared that Steve had arranged a little getaway for them, why though, Tony couldn’t answer. Yet. 

* * *

**9:57 PM~**

Steve’s been in the bathroom for some time. Tony wasn’t worried, but it was unlike him. He knocked on the door. “Steve? You’ve been in there more than a minute.” 

“I’ll be right out.” Came Steve’s voice through the door. 

“Yeah? You’re not hiding from me in there?” Tony joked, turning his ear to the door. He heard Steve’s chuckle. 

“I just need another minute, Tony. Promise.” 

“Okay.” He stepped away from the bathroom and made his way to the living room. 

The room had ceiling to floor windows looking out at New York City. Tony stood in front of one and looked out at the night sky alive with the lights shining from the many buildings, the brightest of which coming from Avengers Tower.

Tony sighed; he always found it relaxing to watch the city, especially from high up. It reminded him of being in the suit and flying high up above all the unsuspecting civilians. Tonight though, it’s just a beautiful night with the one he cares about most.

Deep in his thoughts, Tony didn’t notice that Steve left the bathroom until he was scared by him. Steve had snuck up behind him and wrapped his arms around him. 

“Steve!” Tony exclaimed as his heart jumped. “Don’t scare me like that.” He held his hand over his heart not far from where Steve had his arms wrapped around him. 

“I’m sorry.” Steve whispered at his shoulder. “Thought you could see me coming.”

Tony looked up at their reflection in the glass of the window. “I should’ve, but I didn’t.”

Steve planted a kiss just above his shoulder. “Why is that?”

Tony let his hand wander down to where Steve held him around his waist. “Thinking.”

“About what?” Steve wondered as he threaded his fingers through Tony’s. 

“You.”

Steve looked up from Tony’s shoulder and met his eyes in their reflection. He smiled before tucking his face back into his shoulder. “You smell incredible. I can’t get enough of you.”

Tony smirked. “Knew you liked it. Noticed you reacted when I first got to dinner.”

“Guilty.” Steve confessed, pressing a kiss to Tony’s neck.

Tony turned in Steve’s arms and looped his around Steve’s neck. “Why are we here Steve?”

He didn’t answer immediately, instead he captured Tony’s lips in a soft kiss. Tony smiled, going up on his tiptoes out of habit. He refused to be distracted and made the kiss short. “Steve!” He whined. “I saw the clothes. We’re escaping from the compound, aren’t we?”

Steve nodded as he traced Tony’s lips with his thumb. 

Tony attempted to bite at his thumb but Steve pulled his hand back too quickly. “Are you going to make me ask?” 

Steve was adamant to remain coy. “About?” He asked, tucking his head against the base of Tony’s shoulder where his cologne smelled the strongest.

Tony sighed, accepting defeat for the moment. He looked past Steve in the living room behind them and noticed a bottle of wine and two glasses. “Was that there when we came in?”

“Was what there?” Steve turned and looked in the direction Tony was looking. 

Tony nodded his head towards the bottle of wine. 

“Oh, I grabbed that.” Steve announced.

Tony’s playful smirk painted his face. “Mr. Rogers. You are planning on doing things to me.” 

Steve shut his eyes and shook his head. “You seem intrigued.”

Tony leaned forward until his chest was pressed flush against Steve’s and he wound his arms tighter around his neck, leaving no space between them. “Why wouldn’t I be?” 

Tony initiated the kiss this time, touching his lips to Steve’s with every intention of leading them to the point where Steve does things to him. Steve seemed to have other intentions and kept his kisses relatively PG-rated. Tony pouted. Steve pulled away an inch to confirm what he felt was correct and kissed Tony’s pouty lips. “What’s with the pouting?”

“You are.” He dropped his head on Steve’s shoulder. “You invited me to a wonderful dinner, you got this room for us, you packed a bag, you got wine. But when I ask you why, you keep avoiding an answer. I mean, I’m not reading into things here, right Steve? We’re meant to stay away for a while, eat hotel food, drink wine, and have sex?” He accentuated his question by raising his head and placing another kiss to Steve’s lips. 

Steve returned his kiss then pulled away to look into his eyes. “Yes.” He confirmed and kissed Tony deeper.

When they both needed air, Tony took the opportunity to ask another burning question. “What made you want to do this?”

Steve shrugged, his hands sliding under the jacket of Tony’s suit and pulling it off. “I miss my man.” He tossed the jacket towards the couch.

Eyes following Steve toss his jacket, Tony’s heart fluttered at Steve’s use of his nickname for him. He’ll never admit it. “Nope. You can’t use that. It’s mine.”

Steve loosened Tony’s tie. “Why can’t we both use it? Share it.”

“Nope.” Tony refused. “It’s copyrighted to Tony Stark.”

Steve’s cheeks blushed. “Why can’t Steve Stark use it?” He whispered.

Tony chuckled. “Steve St-” Realization dawned on him and his chuckle faded only to be replaced by a hopeful longing in his eyes as they met Steve’s. 

“Tony,” He cupped Tony’s face in his hands. “I’ve loved you long before I realized that I did. And it took almost losing you for me to admit it.” He bowed his head, looking directly into Tony’s eyes. “The truth is, I’ve always felt like I’m yours.” One of Steve’s hands dropped from Tony’s face. “Won’t you let me be yours?” Steve held a small box in his hand and brought it closer to Tony’s. 

Tony stood frozen, staring into the most beautiful blue eyes he’s ever seen, speechless in the eloquence of Steve’s words, petrified in fear of not being enough for all the elegance and grace that is Steve Rogers.

The small box landed in his hand and he didn’t have to look to know what it contained. Steve bared his heart for him and he only wished he had the words to articulate how much that meant to him, how incredibly exact his feelings for him are. 

Steve blinked, shielding Tony from the entrancing beauty of his eyes, waking him from his spell, returning the breath to his lungs. His hand closed around the box and he threw himself at Steve, hugging him tightly. “Yes!” He agreed. “Yes. Yes. Yes!” He laughed. “Steve, that is everything I’ve ever wanted. I can’t say it like you did, but everything you feel, I do too.” 

He loosened his hug to look at Steve. “I’ve always been yours too.” 

Steve reached for Tony’s hand and took the box. He opened it and took the ring in his hand. Tony on cue, extended his hand out to Steve who so carefully placed the ring on his finger. They smiled. 

Holding his hand in his, like it’s the most precious thing in the world, Steve kissed the ring on Tony’s finger. A laugh escaped Tony’s lips and he threw himself at Steve once more, who took his weight with an ‘oof’, and kissed him languidly. 

* * *

**2:13 AM~**

The bottle of wine was left unopened where Steve placed it on the living room table. Tony’s jacket was still on the couch where Steve tossed it. Steve’s jacket hung by the door. Shoes blocked the doorway to the bathroom, and clothes were strewn about the bedroom. 

Steve and Tony laid side by side on the bed, a sheet covering their heated bodies. Steve had his eyes closed, a smile painted on his lips, and Tony couldn’t stop examining the ring that fit so perfectly around his finger.

Everything was exactly as it had been in Tony’s dreams. He and Steve finally had the peace they so longed for, a quiet that was comfortable. While Tony had teased Steve about his intentions of bringing them to the hotel, Tony would have never guessed that this is how his day was going to end. His head rested on Steve’s shoulder and his ring-adorned hand was held in Steve’s. 

Tony lost count of the number of times Steve kissed his ring finger as he made love to him. He didn’t blame him; Tony couldn’t believe it either. Surreal was maybe the only word in vocabulary that described how he felt, how he hoped--, no, was sure, Steve felt.

He rolled onto his side to face Steve, then turned over onto his stomach to look up at him. Steve’s chest was warm as Tony traced a repetitive string of 0s and 1s to spell ‘I love you’ over his heart. Steve’s smile grew wider, familiar with the sequence. “I love you, too.”

“Steve.” Tony called out in the silent room.

Steve opened his eyes and met Tony’s who smiled at him. He smiled back and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. 

Breathless. That’s another word to sum up Tony’s day. Steve took his breath away, looking the way he did at dinner, froze his lungs from drawing up air when he revealed his heart to him, made his chest tight every time he reached for his hand and kissed the most valuable anything Tony now owned.

He made him forget how to breathe whenever he looked at him with those Egyptian Blue eyes and he felt like he was swimming. 

Shaking his head, Tony leaned forward and kissed Steve. Before Steve could say or do anything, Tony mumbled the most intense feeling he’s had all night. “How am I supposed to survive a lifetime of you taking my breath away?” 

Steve’s arms wrapped around Tony, hugging him closer, breathing in the fading scent of his cologne. “By taking mine.”

Tony’s fond smile could’ve lit up the dark room if such a thing was possible. “There he goes again.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally very loosely inspired by Souvenir by Selena Gomez but somewhere along the writing process it ended up further from it. If you do know/listen to the song, you'll find some elements still there.


End file.
